Tackling human trafficking

The child of a Cambodian prostitute stands in the doorway of a Phnom Penh slum shack as a group of sex workers play cards to pass the time.

David Longstreath
/ AP Images

This week's Global Journalist panelists used vastly different methods to fight a modern version of slavery: the global sex trade.

Guy Jacobson was backpacking in Cambodia, when a group of very young girls aggressively tried to offer him sex for money. After he repeatedly refused, they revealed to him that they would be beaten by the brothel owners if they returned empty-handed.

The appalling experience a decade ago motivated Jacobson to create a non-profit organization -- the Redlight Children Campaign -- and the New York lawyer began producing documentary films about child prostitution in Cambodia. The crews went undercover in brothels using espionage equipment and secret cameras.

Jane Tafel is the executive director of Hagar USA. The religious organization operates in Cambodia, Vietnam and Afghanistan to improve the lives of severely abused women and children.

Mark Morris is a Pulitzer-prize-winning investigative reporter for the Kansas City Star. Morris and his team spent six months investigating the effectiveness of America’s efforts to stop human trafficking.